In Less Than Two Months You Can Title an Abandoned Car in Arizona or Arkansas

Abandoned cars are popping out everywhere if you know where and how to search them. If you bought a property and you find one there, then things are easier. They might be a little trickier if you find it somewhere else, i.e., a public place, a parking lot, in the woods, or on a field.

Sunny upside on the hood in Arizona

The heat is there to stay, and you can cook some eggs, sunny side up, on an abandoned car left rotting on the side of the road. Just be sure that you'll do that only after you have the title for the car in your hands; otherwise, it is illegal to touch the vehicle.

According to Arizona's state laws, any vehicle that needs license plates left unattended for more than 10 days is considered abandoned, but you have to prove that it sat there for that time. After that, you can either show pictures with a stamped date or talk to some neighbors and get statements from them. Then, call the local police department or some third-party companies that have contracts with Arizona's DOT (Department of Transportation) to report the vehicle.

After the authorities inspect the vehicle, they will search for the owners and ask them to retrieve their abandoned vehicle. If no one is found in 30 days of searching, you can apply for a new title issued by AZMVD (Arizona Motor Vehicle Department). You must specify that you have the vehicle, and nobody showed any proof of ownership for it. You can move the car and start working on it only after the AZMVD issues a title on your name. Or bake eggs on its roof (if any). Ugh! By the way, you have to pay for the tow truck, storage, registration fees, and so on. At least, the metal was free.

It seems to me that Arizona is one of the best places to get an abandoned vehicle into your possession. Not only that the procedures require less time, but the vehicles themselves are usually rust-free and look fair, provided they were not used for target practice.

Arkansas awaits you with rust buckets or fortunes

Due to its moist air, Arkansas is not exactly the best place to get a relic. Yet, sometimes worth trying, especially if the vehicle's frame is solid. But you should know that, in that state, the law considers a car abandoned if the owner didn't manifest interest in it for more than 30 days. There is a little catch here; the Arkansas Code 27-50-1101 says, "Remaining unattended, whether in the location first found or in another location that the vehicle has been removed to pursuant to this subchapter, for a period of thirty (30) days, during which the owner has given no evidence of an intent to retake possession." It might mean that you can move it into a different location if you see it left to rust for a longer time. But I strongly advise you to check with a local lawyer, because it seems kind of weird.

Anyway, if you want that relic, call the cops and give them the VIN so they can run it through the National Motor Vehicle Title Information System (NMVTIS) to find the owner. They will send notifications at the last known address and wait for an answer for 45 days. In the meantime, you have to post an announcement, once, in a generally circulating newspaper in the area where the vehicle was found, and wait for the same time.

After that, request a lien release with the revenue office. They will also notify the previous owner but will wait only ten days for an answer. Again, if there is no reply, they will send a title to the new owner (that would be you, the finder). But just because you found it, it doesn't mean that your county revenue office will believe you. That's why it is vital to have all the papers in order, including the requests and the written answers from your local police. You should have no trouble with that, especially if the county revenue office tried and failed to contact the owner.

Thus, in approximately 45 days, you can be the proud owner of a "new" relic that will sit in your garage, in your yard, or it will go through a restoration process.